Unhappy New Year!

I’m guessing very few Cubs fans were aware of who Tatsuya Imai, but after his signing with the Astros today the response on social media has been practically panic-filled. The accusations that Jed always finished 2nd and that Tom Ricketts has tied his hands financially are again coming up.

I’ll admit to being one of those people who was very excited about the possibility of getting Imai to add a top-line starter to the rotation. Reports that he was close to signing with the Cubs got my hopes up. And anticipation grew as we got closer and closer to the New Year’s Day Deadline.

But based on his contract with the Astros, it appears that the Cubs front office was less excited about Imai. There were definitely questions about his velocity, and whether it will play in the majors. And he had mentioned he wanted to play with a team with no Japanese players – which the Astros are – but who knows if that was just hyperbole.

So it’s possible that the Cub dodged a bullet here. But today, it does not feel that way.

There are still a few top line free-agent starting pitchers available: Framber Valdez, Ranger Suarez and Zac Gallen at the top of the list. But I’m also seeing opinions that the Cubs will go the trade route for starting pitching, instead of a free agent, with priority for dollars going to Alex Bregman.

The Cubs have done a nice job of rebuilding the bullpen without spending too much, but I still feel like they still need a starter and a solid hitter before this offseason is over if they don’t want to return to watching the MLB playoffs at home.